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3232Catholic Relief Services Asks Congress to Fund Major Contraception-Pushing Agencieshttps://www.lepantoinstitute.org/crs-testamony-to-congress-2019/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/crs-testamony-to-congress-2019/#commentsTue, 19 Mar 2019 15:01:01 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5357Since 2016, the Lepanto Institute has written about the congressional lobbying efforts of both the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Catholic Relief Services (CRS). In May of 2016, we provided details regarding a joint-letter the USCCB and CRS sent to Congress requesting nearly $6 billion to be allocated for the United States […]

Since 2016, the Lepanto Institute has written about the congressional lobbying efforts of both the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Catholic Relief Services (CRS).

In May of 2016, we provided details regarding a joint-letter the USCCB and CRS sent to Congress requesting nearly $6 billion to be allocated for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). At the heart of our concern was the fact that USAID and PEPFAR together consist of the world’s largest suppliers of contraception and condoms. The next month, we published the correspondence between a tenacious Catholic and a representative of the USCCB, who reluctantly admitted that the funding request made by the USCCB and CRS would include coverage of contraception and condoms.

Last year, we called out both the USCCB and CRS for requesting “robust funding” for PEPFAR and the Global Fund, an agency which has provided grants for the spread of contraception and even made grants directly to Planned Parenthood.

And just as in the past few years, CRS is even now lobbying Congress to provide massive funding to three agencies thoroughly committed to spreading grave moral evils. On March 12, 2019, Catholic Relief Services gave testimony to Congress, asking for unqualified billions of dollars for USAID, PEPFAR and the Global Fund. This funding would most assuredly include the spread of contraception and condoms. CRS even specified its request of funding for USAID’s Maternal and Child Health programs and HIV/AIDS programs, knowing fully well that both programs are the most heavily involved with the spread of contraception.

Addressing the appropriations to the House subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, CRS Executive VP for Mission, Mobilization, and Advocacy, William O’Keefe “urged” Congress to “prioritize” increased funding for a number of federal agencies, including USAID, PEPFAR, and the Global Fund.

For USAID projects that include the spread of contraception and condoms, O’Keefe requested $1.175 billion. He also requested $5.93 billion for the condom-distributing and promoting PEPFAR. For the Planned Parenthood funding, contraception-pushing Global Fund, O’Keefe said, “To leverage adequate support from other donors, we ask that the committee appropriate at least $1.56 billion to the Global Fund this year.” All told, CRS knowingly and willfully requested that Congress provide $8.665 billion to three agencies that are absolutely committed to spreading the Culture of Death.

Throughout the entire 5-page testimony, at no point did O’Keefe indicate that such funding for USAID, PEPFAR, or the Global Fund should not be used for the spread or promotion of contraception or condoms. In the USCCB’s backgrounder on the lobbying efforts for increased funding for these agencies, the USCCB applauded the work of PEPFAR saying “As of 2018, the President’s Emergency Program for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has saved 17 million lives, and nearly 2.4 million babies at risk of AIDS were born HIV-free.” What good is saving 19 million physical lives if the work also includes polluting the souls of those saved?

Only on a summary page of a budget request chart does CRS and the USCCB mention any sort of concern for the contraception and condom promotion coming from the agencies they so zealously sought funding for. The summary stated:

“Although we have principled concerns about those PEPFAR prevention activities we find inconsistent with Catholic teaching and do not implement or advocate for these activities, we support PEPFAR’s overall lifesaving mission and urge robust funding for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.”

O’Keefe, who spoke on behalf of CRS, is no stranger to controversy. An avid supporter of Hillary Clinton, Bill O’Keefe told CNN in 2014 that Catholic Relief Services is “proud” of the fact that in its work, CRS does not “attempt to engage in discussions of faith.” O’Keefe said, “We’re proud of that. We like to say that we assist everybody because we’re Catholic, we don’t assist people to become Catholic.”

USAID and Population Control

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was originally created as a population control program. USAID was created through the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, and one of the primary goals of USAID identified in the Act was population control. Paragraph 4 of subsection b of section 102 of this act states the following:

(4) Development assistance provided under this chapter shall be concentrated in countries which will make the most effective use of such assistance to help satisfy basic human needs of poor people through equitable growth, especially in those countries having the greatest need for outside assistance. In order to make possible consistent and informed judgments in this respect, the President shall assess the commitment and progress of countries in moving toward the objectives and purposes of this chapter by utilizing criteria, including but not limited to the following:

(A) increase in agricultural productivity per unit of land through small-farm, labor-intensive agriculture;
(B) reduction of infant mortality;
(C) control of population growth

In his 1966 State of the Union message, President Johnson spoke of giving a “new and daring direction to our foreign aid program.” He proposed to Congress that $1 billion in aid funds be earmarked for new efforts in international health and education; the development of modern agriculture overseas; a world-wide war on hunger, disease and ignorance; the eradication of smallpox and malaria, and increased research in population control.

In the October 1971 issue of Front Lines, which was the official publication of AID, the administrator of AID from 1962-1966, David E. Bell, mentioned how population growth was a top concern from its inception. He said, “First, AID has consistently pioneered in improving the quality of foreign aid. The development of program lending, the early recognition of population growth as a major concern, the evolution of the Development Assistance Committee, are simply a few illustrations of AID’s leadership.”

In the same issue, Milo Cox, Deputy Director for Field Review and Evaluation in the Office of Agriculture and Fisheries said, “U.S. development agencies were well in the vanguard in recognizing and pushing vigorously for programs in agricultural development and population controls long before these were popular ideas here or in the developing world.”

In 1969, during his very first year in office, President Nixon informed Congress he had ordered AID to give a high priority to population control and family planning programs. He said:

“I have asked the Secretary of State and the Administrator of the Agency for International Development to give population and family planning high priority for attention, personnel, research, and funding among our several aid programs. … As we increase our population and family planning efforts abroad, we also call upon other nations to enlarge their programs in this area.”

By 1974, Nixon had Henry Kissinger conduct a secret study on the use of population control as a weapon against communism. The report was called the National Security Study Memorandum 200, or NSSM 200 for short.

Page 8 of NSSM 200 says the following about the role of AID in this new approach:

“Although it was adopted primarily for other reasons, the new emphasis of AID’s legislation on problems of the poor … is directly relevant to the conditions required for fertility reduction.”

Page 14 of the report gives even greater detail of the magnitude of population control programs to be enacted through AID, including education and agriculture:

“Implementing the actions discussed above (in paragraphs 1-36), will require a significant expansion in AID funds for population/family planning. A number of major actions in the area of creating conditions for fertility decline can be funded from resources available to the sectors in question (e.g., education, agriculture). Other actions, including family planning services, research and experimental activities on factors effecting fertility, come under population funds. We recommend increases in AID budget requests to the Congress on the order of $35-50 million annually through FY 1980 (above the $137.5 million requested for FY 1975). This funding would cover both bilateral programs and contributions to multilateral organizations. However, the level of funds needed in the future could change significantly, depending on such factors as major breakthroughs in fertility control technologies and LDC receptivities to population assistance. To help develop, monitor, and evaluate the expanded actions discussed above AID is likely to need additional direct hire personnel in the population/family planning area. As a corollary to expanded AID funding levels for population, efforts must be made to encourage increased contributions by other donors and recipient countries to help reduce rapid population growth.”

The rest of the report provides even greater detail on the plan for implementing population control programs in the guise of foreign assistance, but this suffices to make the point.

Today, USAID boasts that it is the largest contraception distributing agency in the entire world. On the USAID website, under the heading of Family Planning and Reproductive Health, USAID says the following:

“As the world’s largest family planning bilateral donor, USAID is committed to helping countries meet the family planning and reproductive health needs of their people. USAID supports Family Planning 2020’s (link is external) goal to reach 120 million more women and girls in the world’s poorest countries with access to voluntary family planning information, contraceptives, and services by 2020. Since the launch of USAID’s family planning program in 1965, families are better able to feed, clothe, educate and provide healthcare for their children. Moreover, modern contraceptive use in the 27 countries with the largest USAID-supported programs has increased from under 10 percent to 37 percent, and the number of children per family has dropped from more than 6 to 4.5.“

PEPFAR and the spread of contraception and Condoms

As we’ve reported before, PEPFAR is deeply involved in the promotion and distribution of contraception, including abortifacients. For instance, in a section on PEPFAR’s website titled, “Linking HIV/AIDS to Women’s and Children’s Health,” PEPFAR makes clear that its work to fight HIV/AIDS includes the promotion and spread of contraception. PEPFAR says:

As part of its overall prevention, care and support, and treatment efforts, PEPFAR is leveraging and linking HIV services to broader delivery mechanisms that improve health outcomes for women and children. Some of these activities include:

Expanding integration of HIV prevention, care and support, and treatment services with family planning and reproductive health services, so that women living with HIV can access necessary care, and so that all women know how to protect themselves from HIV infection.

“The blueprint is intended to promote greater global investments and programmatic impact in the fight against AIDS. The U.S. leads the world in contributions in the fight against AIDS, having invested nearly $37 billion to date in bilateral funding and over $7 billion to the Global Fund since FY 2004. But even as we lead, other countries must step up, and in the end, we should all be measured not only by what we invest, but by the number of lives we help save.”

As can be seen in the correspondence between a concerned Catholic and a representative of the USCCB, the constant talking point as to why the USCCB lobbied Congress on behalf of PEPFAR was that “PEPFAR saves lives.” However, throughout this 64 page Blueprint, PEPFAR mentions the need to increase the distribution and use of condoms 41 times. Just one example of this commitment to the spread of condoms, PEPFAR said on page 39:

To implement this action step, PEPFAR is and will:

7. Encourage sexually-active youth to learn their HIV status, practice safer sexand reduce their number of sexual partners. Provide sexually active young people with risk reduction information and skills building, including access to male and female condoms and information on correct and consistent condom use.

The Global Fund’s New Plan for Spreading Birth Control

Earlier in this article, we referenced a previous report that indicated how CRS lobbied in behalf of the Global Fund, and its funding of contraception and Planned Parenthood. As with USAID and PEPFAR, by lobbying for funds on behalf of the Global Fund, CRS has made itself a willing accomplice to the Global Fund’s wicked plans and activities. And those plans include establishing programs that “advance sexual and reproductive health and rights.”

Under Strategic Objective 2 Build Resilient and Sustainable Systems for Health there are seven operational objectives. They include:

Support reproductive, women’s, children’s, and adolescent health, and platforms for integrated service delivery

Under Strategic Objective 3 Promote and Protect Human Rights and Gender Equality there are five operational objectives. They include:

Scale-up programs to support women and girls, including programs to advance sexual and reproductive health and rights

It is important to note that sexual and reproductive health services are euphemisms for abortion and contraception.

Conclusion

There really is no excuse for CRS and the USCCB to actively lobby Congress for funding for contraception and condom promoters and distributors. There is even less of an excuse for them to be lobbying on behalf of an agency that was created for the specific purpose of enacting population control programs and policies in impoverished nations. And yet, this is precisely what they are doing. The question is, why?

It all comes down to the almighty dollar. In O’Keefe’s testimony, he mentioned CRS activities throughout the world, many of which were funded through USAID, PEPFAR or the Global Fund. By lobbying Congress to provide “robust funding” to these agencies, CRS is expanding on its own opportunities for funding.

The official internet resource for US government spending data is USAspending.gov. The stated mission of the website is “to show the American public what the federal government spends every year and how it spends the money.” When looking up funding to Catholic Relief Services, total amounts allocated to CRS from 2005 through 2023 from USAID total $2.47 billion. For the years 2018 and 2019 alone, CRS has received $671,505,602 from USAID.

The website responsible for tracking funded projects of PEPFAR is copsdata.amfar.org. According to the website, “the database highlights planned funding by program area, country, and organization for each year that has been publicly released.” PEPFAR website which tracks all of its grants to various organizations indicates that PEPFAR has allocated over $ $924 million to Catholic Relief Services since the year 2005. This does not include the money CRS has received through PEPFAR as a result of being a sub-partner on other PEPFAR projects where CRS was not the principle recipient of the grant.

It’s difficult to know exactly how much CRS has received from the Global Fund over the years because the Global Fund website isn’t as comprehensive as PEPFAR’s. That said, we have been able to confirm that CRS has received at least $264,226,459 from the Global Fund for 10 different grants. The amounts are as follows:

If anything is ever going to change at Catholic Relief Services, this kind of quid pro quo between them and government granting agencies has got to come to an end. CRS and the USCCB have got to stop lobbying Congress to expand federal funding to agencies that are truly Enemies of the Cross of Christ, and they have to stop receiving money from them as well.

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/crs-testamony-to-congress-2019/feed/1Masters of Deceptionhttps://www.lepantoinstitute.org/masters-of-deception/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/masters-of-deception/#commentsTue, 19 Mar 2019 02:41:07 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5331Jesus and his disciples are about to share the Passover meal. Among them is Judas, who has already promised the religious leaders that he will deliver Jesus to them in exchange for 30 cycles of silver. “After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, ‘Very truly I tell you, one of […]

Jesus and his disciples are about to share the Passover meal. Among them is Judas, who has already promised the religious leaders that he will deliver Jesus to them in exchange for 30 cycles of silver.

“After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, ‘Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me.’ His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, ‘Ask him which one he means.’ Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, ‘Lord, who is it?’ Jesus answered, ‘It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.’ Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him. So Jesus told him, ‘What you are about to do, do quickly.’ But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.” (John 13:21-30)

—

Harald Sigurdson, the legendary king of Norway, called the Hardrada (tough ruler) by his men, once had to take well-fortified enclave. When his forces arrived near their objective, they pretended that their king was sick, perhaps dying. A few days into the siege, word reached the fortress that Harald was dead. His men then asked the priests in the castle to allow them to give Harald a fitting burial in consecrated ground. The priests agreed, and Harald’s men were allowed in, marching in large somber procession and carrying the casket with their supposedly dead monarch. Once inside the gates, a surprisingly healthy Harald leaped from the coffin. His men locked the gates open and signaled the rest of Harald’s forces to come in fighting. Daring king Harald repeated the trick a few more times until that fateful day when he conquered a six-foot parcel of English soil and got himself a real funeral.

In one of my favorite movies, Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, Michael Corleone arranges the assassination of all his competitor mobsters while he ‘innocently’ attends a baptismal ceremony. What better alibi than being in Church doing what a respectable Catholic man does: becoming a godfather, welcoming a newborn child in the community of the faithful while his minions are gunning down his competitors all over town.

Appearances can be deceptive, especially when those pretending to be decent are up to no good.

—

Sincere Catholics are just beginning to discover a vast operation, designed by enemies who have infiltrated the Church to destroy it from within. In our case, the attack did not come without warning. In previous articles, I commented on Communist defectors, converts, and others warning about a fifth column of enemies growing inside the Church since the days of Pope Leo XIII. The basic element of their strategy is deception. While it is true that is very difficult for them to remain completely invisible, they have succeeded to conceal their real objective by feigning to be ‘reformers.’ They declare to be Catholics who believe that the Church should be “modernized” to “come up with the times” becoming more effective at saving souls for Christ. In my opinion, that is as truthful as the deceitful request of Harald’s soldiers, or Michael Corleone’s timing on his nephew’s baptism. Modernists are up to no good.

The methods of infiltration have changed over time but there is one that proved to be quite successful lately. It consists in pretending to be a hyper-traditionalist and start some new movement feigning to help Catholics to live their faith more deeply. Although I am not naming names, I have three particular cases in mind that seem to closely follow this modus operandi: pretend to be very traditional (because Modernists simply do not attract big numbers to join their ranks) and then work hard at attracting the cream of the cream of young good Catholics in their area of influence. That will bring in funds. Once deceived by the Judases, True Catholics are generous with those who appear to be working hard for the cause of Christ. As soon as the pretenders get enough young men, and a good flow of donations coming into their account, they unveil the third part of the operation that can be one or more of the following:

To pervert the youth trusted to their care,

To use the newly acquired prestige to covertly promote the Modernist agenda,

To utilize the religious organization to launder illegal money,

To get involved in all kinds of covert illegal activities.

All of that while living the ‘good life’ like Marcial Maciel, Theodore McCarrick, and others that you know very well.

Some organizations (like The Lepanto Institute, Church Militant, and others) are exposing those creeps but that is not likely to completely stop them from trying to demolish the Church. The deceivers are people who, for the most part, do not believe in God and have no problem spreading lies, destroying reputations, making false accusations, or abusing power. Many appear on Catholic media regularly to deceptively request funds to line their pockets and live lavishly off the faithful’s alms.

—

Now, going back to John 13:21-30, we can use that passage as a guide or model to help us understand what is going on. That scripture begins with Jesus feeling troubled in the spirit by the treasonous plans of Judas Iscariot. That is when Our Lord let the apostles know that one among them is a traitor. In my opinion, that is Jesus’ last attempt to rescue the betrayer from perdition. He can read Judas’ heart just like he could read the hearts of his enemies many times before. (See Matthew 9:4-5) Of course, all the apostles are alarmed at this sudden revelation. Their alarm resembles the shock and confusion that the Church will experience before her own Passion.

Peter takes the initiative and asks John to inquire who is the traitor. John, the one reclining closer to the Sacred Heart, asks the Lord. Jesus answers with a sign. First he deeps a morsel in the plate and then gives it to Judas. That is an act of friendship designed to move Judas to repentance and confession. But the Iscariot’s conscience does not change. He is already focused on the price of his treason. He sees Jesus as the means to get to the promised payment, not as his Friend and Savior. Judas’ heart is hardening fast. He accepts the morsel of food unmoved by the Lord’s love for him. At that moment, the devil takes hold of Judas and the poor sinner becomes the instrument of evil.

Jesus utters some mysterious words: “What you are about to do, do quickly.” Those words enter into the sinner’s ears but his intentions don’t change. Both Judas and Jesus know now that the death of Our Lord is sealed. Judas is determined to get his money and Jesus is bound to voluntarily enter the mystery of redemption through the Cross. At that point, Judas goes into the darkness of the night to complete his betrayal.

Keep that sequence of events in mind and compare it with the ongoing betrayal of the Church that may very well lead to her own Passion. “Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.” (John 15:20) If Jesus was betrayed, the Church will be betrayed also. We must be prepared as a Church to endure the Passion just like Our Lord did.

Those close to the Sacred Heart will know and understand just like John did. Like John himself, they will remain close to Jesus until the very end.

The traitors will go to the darkness outside, to the world and the foolish adulation, fleeting riches, and empty pleasures they covet. The Church will have to suffer and die to give witness of her Master. Yet we must remember: there is no Resurrection without Calvary.

After Calvary, Jesus was raised to everlasting glory and appeared to Mary Magdalene in the garden; just as if that modest garden outside the Holy Sepulcher was a new Eden. The way to that Eden of glorious light in the eternal company of Jesus is the Holy Cross. Through this time of confusion, concentrate on the great prize before us.

“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with Me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the unchaste, the murderers, the idolaters and all those who love and practice deception.” (Revelation 22:12-14)

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/masters-of-deception/feed/4Despite Warnings, CCHD Continues Funding Immoral Activismhttps://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-bishops-continue-to-fund-notorious-pro-abortion-homosexualist-northwest-bronx-community-clergy-coalition/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-bishops-continue-to-fund-notorious-pro-abortion-homosexualist-northwest-bronx-community-clergy-coalition/#commentsWed, 13 Mar 2019 18:44:07 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5301The 2017-2018 Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) grants list shows that the Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition (NWBCCC) received $60,000, bringing the total this organization has received to $290,000 since 2005. In 2012, the Reform CCHD Now coalition alerted the US bishops to serious problems with NWBCCC including homosexual activism and the promotion […]

The 2017-2018 Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) grants list shows that the Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition (NWBCCC) received $60,000, bringing the total this organization has received to $290,000 since 2005.

In 2012, the Reform CCHD Now coalition alerted the US bishops to serious problems with NWBCCC including homosexual activism and the promotion of Marxism. Monsignor Kevin Sullivan of the Archdiocese of New York responded in writing by indicating that this grantee was previously reviewed and would not receive further grants from the CCHD. He wrote:

“After the most recent review of their CCHD grant request, prior to your letter, the NWBCCC was not recommended for funding, and will not be receiving money from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development.”

Just two years later, during the 2014-2015 grants cycle, NWBCCC would again receive funding from the CCHD. Toward the end of 2014, we reported how the NWBCCC’s agitation tactics resulted in the deaths of two police officers. In 2016, despite its continued promotion of Marxism and blatant homosexual activism, NWBCCC received yet another grant from the CCHD. And even though we proved NWBCCC’s gravely immoral activism in a new report, the CCHD responded by INCREASING the amount of funding for this vile organization to $60,000 per funding cycle.

Yes, that is correct — this anti-cop, pro-Marxist and homosexualist organization is now receiving $60,000 per year from the US Bishops through the CCHD program.

All told, since 2005, the NWBCCC has received $325,000 in nine different grants from the CCHD. And the problems with this grantee continue. NWBCCC’s recent activity shows not only the continued promotion of homosexuality, it also shows that NWBCCC is promoting abortion through its membership in the Campaign for New York Health coalition.

Promotion of Homosexuality

One of NWBCCC’s official programs is a youth organization called Sistas and Brothas United (SBU). Previous reports noted the blatant promotion of homosexual activism to youth through this program, and sadly this is an ongoing problem.

The signs of homosexual activism are readily apparent NWBCCC’s own website, especially where it describes SBU as offering a safe place “for youth in middle and high school to address the various forms of systemic oppression they encounter in our communities, including racism, homophobia, sexism, and ageism.”

The description of SBU later continues a focus on youth homosexuality, stating that another component of their work is dismantling the school to prison pipeline for LGBTQ students among others.

The SBU program’s Facebook page, however, makes it abundantly clear that this program is still promoting homosexual activism to kids as one of its major components.

If this wasn’t bad enough, in January 2018, SBU promoted Grand Street Settlement’s job “opportunity” for children as young as 13. Grand Street Settlement is a homosexual youth activism group. This job posting was for Grand Street Settlements “youth led Gender and Sexuality Social Advocacy and Training Programs; Gender Exploration Movement and Project Speak Out Loud.”

Finally, CFNYH signed on to the “NY People’s Platform” that explicitly states “Comprehensive reproductive health care, including abortion, is a fundamental component of every person’s health, bodily autonomy, privacy and equality.” [emphasis added]

The CCHD grant agreement clearly states in section A. 5. “Grantee agrees that it will not knowingly participate in any coalition that has as part of its organizational purpose or agenda the promotion of actions in conflict with fundamental Catholic moral or social teaching.”

Clearly NWBCCC is not currently nor was it ever worthy of receiving the hard-earned money of faithful Catholics in the pews. What is absolutely infuriating in this particular case is that despite repeated warnings to the CCHD, and a claim from the Archdiocese of New York that NWBCCC “will not be receiving money from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development” – the CCHD actually INCREASED its funding to this horrible organization. This shows that the entire “Review and Renewal” CCHD claimed to have undertaken in 2010 was a farce and a smokescreen. It is time to end the CCHD NOW.

Please contact the CCHD and demand answers. Ask them how or why an organization like NWBCCC ever received a grant and if CCHD will demand Catholic money to be returned for violating CCHD guidelines and Catholic moral/social teaching.

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-bishops-continue-to-fund-notorious-pro-abortion-homosexualist-northwest-bronx-community-clergy-coalition/feed/3US Bishops Gave $130,000 to Homosexualist, Pro-Abortion Heartland Workers Centerhttps://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-bishops-gave-130000-to-homosexualist-pro-abortion-heartland-workers-center/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-bishops-gave-130000-to-homosexualist-pro-abortion-heartland-workers-center/#commentsThu, 07 Mar 2019 16:16:22 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5261The Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), an agency of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), annually provides anywhere from $9 million to $15 million to political agitation groups every year. For fiscal year 2017-2018, the CCHD issued a total of $10,418,500 in grant money to such organizations. The problem is that every […]

The Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), an agency of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), annually provides anywhere from $9 million to $15 million to political agitation groups every year. For fiscal year 2017-2018, the CCHD issued a total of $10,418,500 in grant money to such organizations. The problem is that every year, despite constant denials and promises, the CCHD funds organizations that are directly promoting abortion, homosexuality, Marxism, or heresy, or they are members of coalitions that do these things, or their leadership is involved in them. And this last grant cycle is no different.

Since 2015, the CCHD has provided a total of $130,000 to an organization that helped found and continues to lead a coalition that promotes homosexuality and abortion, including events held by Planned Parenthood. Furthermore, leadership in this organization actively promotes homosexuality and abortion. Furthermore, its leadership actively promotes the same.

It is important to note that this money was provided by every diocese in the United States that participates in the CCHD collection. Whenever a diocese takes up the CCHD collection (typically the third Sunday of November), 25% of that funding remains with the diocese while the other 75% goes to the National CCHD and is redistributed to groups like this one.

HWC is a Founding Member and on the Board of Pro-Abortion, Pro-Homosexual Organization

Heartland Worker’s Center helped to create an organization that has the stated objective of increasing the participation of homosexual activist organizations in Nebraska while it was receiving funding from the CCHD. The Nebraska Civic Engagement Table (NCET) was founded in 2016, which would have been at the end of HWC’s 2015-2016 grant and the beginning of HWC’s 2016-2017 grant. According to NCET’s webpage regarding its members, HWC is not just a member, but is a founding member, which means that part of HWC’s official operations was to create this organization.

“…build a more just, inclusive, and engaged Nebraska by increasing the year-round civic participation of our nonprofit members’ supporters and the “rising electorate” that includes: African-Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, AAPI, new citizens, low-income families, women, LGBT Nebraskans, and young voters. Our goal is to increase their share of voter turnout, ensure their voices are represented in the policy decisions that affect their lives, and build leadership among community members and our nonprofit partners. ” [emphasis added]

NCET specifically mentions that it aims to increase the civic participation of LGBT Nebraskans as a founding principle. As will be illustrated, this founding principle extends to active promotion of homosexuality and transgenderism. But HWC’s connection to NCET doesn’t end with merely being a founding member. It’s current participation is far more active, as HWC’s Senior Organizer, Lucia Pedroza, serves on NCET’s board. This means that HWC directly participates in the direction and governance of this coalition.

It’s important to remember here that the CCHD has a very specific guideline in it’s grant agreement … which HWC had to have signed in order to receive a CCHD grant … which states:

“Grantee agrees that it will not knowingly participate in any coalition that has as part of its organizational purpose or agenda the promotion of actions in conflict with fundamental Catholic moral or social teaching.“

As has already been demonstrated, HWC went beyond “participating” in the coalition. HWC helped create it and sits on its governing body.

This alone should be enough for the CCHD to pull HWC’s grant. But in order to remove any and all doubt that this coalition “has as part of its organizational purpose or agenda the promotion of actions in conflict with fundamental Catholic moral or social teaching,” it is important to illustrate its direct pro-abortion and pro-homosexual activities.

Also, in 2017, NCET promoted a fundraising event for Planned Parenthood of the Heartland called the annual Sexy Pub Quiz. Because HWC is both a member and serving on the board of directors of NCET, HWC is complicit in helping to raise funds for Planned Parenthood.

As mentioned earlier, CCHD guidelines clearly state that membership in coalitions such as NCET are strictly forbidden as a condition for reception of a grant. Based on this criterion alone, HWC MUST be defunded.

But in addition to this, HWC’s help in founding this coalition and participation directly in its operations by virtue of membership on its board of directors constitutes a direct action on the part of HWC, which is a violation of CCHD grant agreement section A. 4, which states:

“Grantee agrees that it will not engage in activities in conflict with fundamental Catholic moral or social teaching. Among other things, Grantee agrees that it will not promote or support abortion, same-sex marriage, euthanasia, racism, discriminatory measures toward immigrants, or use of the death penalty.”

In 2019 Lucia Pedroza joined the board of the pro-abortion Omaha Women’s Fund and listed “reproductive justice” (a euphemism that includes abortion “rights”) as an interest. The Omaha Women’s Fund directly supports abortion and states on its website, “All women deserve the right to decide if, when and how to start a family. This requires access—to comprehensive sex education as well as unrestricted access to sexual and reproductive health services.”

HWC’s staff page on its website gives the bio of one of HWC’s organizers, indicating that he is in a same-sex “marriage.” Raúl Arcos, who “liked” the pro-homosexual post by NCET discussed earlier, is identified as an “organizer” for HWC. His bio says, “He is married and lives in Grand Island with his husband and three cats.”

Clearly this is not an organization worthy of Catholic funds, yet it has fleeced over $130,000 from faithful, pew-sitting Catholics! No matter how many times the CCHD and its bishop-advocates promise not to fund such organizations, they continue to fund them time and again. No amount of reform is going to change the problem as the CCHD has shown itself to be either completely incapable of properly vetting organizations receiving Catholic funding, or it is itself supportive of groups like this. And if CCHD sees no moral issue with funding an organization such as HWC, then the fundamental problem with it is plain for all to see.

It is time to END the Catholic Campaign for Human Development!

Please contact the CCHD and demand answers. Ask them how or why an organization like HWC ever received a grant and if CCHD will demand Catholic money to be returned for violating CCHD guidelines and Catholic moral/social teaching.

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-bishops-gave-130000-to-homosexualist-pro-abortion-heartland-workers-center/feed/7Return to our faithhttps://www.lepantoinstitute.org/5236-2/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/5236-2/#commentsFri, 01 Mar 2019 12:59:16 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5236What is Heaven? I believe Heaven is eternal life in God, the same life we talk about when we recite the final verses of the Credo: I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Heaven is […]

What is Heaven? I believe Heaven is eternal life in God, the same life we talk about when we recite the final verses of the Credo:

I believe in the Holy Spirit,the holy Catholic Church,the communion of saints,the forgiveness of sins,the resurrection of the body,and the life everlasting.

Heaven is life everlasting. Yes, it is also a place where God lives, and a state of perpetual happiness, and many other good things. Notice how the verses are organized. First of all the Love of God, the Holy Spirit, a love so real that is a Person. What follows is the Catholic Church, “catholic” in its universality extending not only in space but in time as well, its center well defined by the Cross of Calvary: day zero, mile zero. The communion of saints is a necessary consequence of the above. “Saints” are “separated” like a vessel is separated for sacred purposes and excluded from profane use. We do not use the word “the elect” much these days but that is the essential meaning of “saint” or “holy” —both when applied to human beings or to the Church— something God selects and separates for His own purpose.

The forgiveness of sins is also necessary. The whole process of making us holy —that is separated from the profane world to serve God— is a consequence of our fallen condition. No one can enter Heaven in a sinful condition. We have to be made new, die and resurrect in the proper condition. The words “the resurrection of the body” mean to be made whole again to the same condition our father Adam had in the beginning. Then and only then comes “life everlasting” that is: living in God who is the “I AM”. The One that really is (by His own will to be) is also the One that wills us to be. Being loved by Him, brought to communion with Him, forgiven, cleansed from our sins, and resurrected to a new life by Him are all part of the needed previous preparation to live in Him.

Our role in that process is to worship, to reverently prepare ourselves to enter into what is holy: a new life that is perfectly ordered to the rest of the universe, a life that is catholic, aligned in every dimension to the divine will. For God must be worshiped perfectly in the way He desires. That perfect worship requires the total obliteration of our desire. We will be made perfectly happy and free by surrendering to God, doing God’s will in all things. And all things mean absolutely all, each and every thing. There is no room for the preferences of the sinful will (voluntas mea) which we must leave behind.

A deceitful spirit

The evil “spirit of the council” began to blow through the Church like a storm, blinding the faithful and obscuring that order, the path that leads to Heaven. Since those days, the so-called “pastoral” approach to leading the Church has not helped anyone reach the ultimate goal. If we surrender our will to God’s will in communion, there is no room left for tactical maneuvers. We cannot contradict the faith because there are no shortcuts available; the faith is the shortest way to Heaven. If we don’t see God, if we don’t fix our eyes in Him as the ultimate goal, we will be lost in the fog.

Please, read this quote carefully and see how men have inverted the very impulse that leads the Church to walk the path of faith leading to God.

“We must strip from our Catholic prayers and from the Catholic liturgy everything which can be the shadow of a stumbling block for our separated brethren; that is for the Protestants.” (Emphasis added) — Archbishop Annibale Bugnini, L’Osservatore Romano, March 19, 1965.

“You shall have no other gods before Me” is clear enough. We cannot look at the Truth straight in the eye if there are obstacles in our way. Those are the stumbling blocks we must remove. No element of the true faith is a barrier for anyone, Protestant or not. If we start minding the thoughts of those straying far, our attention will deviate from the will of God. The Good Shepherd does not take the whole flock to the ravines where the lost lamb is trapped. On the contrary, He takes the flock to good pastures and makes an effort to find and restore the lost lamb to the flock.

The Second Vatican Council intended to reach out to the Protestant by making the Catholic faith clear to everyone. After the Council was over, the promoters of the “spirit of the council” did not go the extra mile to rescue our lost brethren to bring them back. On the contrary, they began the systematic destruction of the ancient Catholic faith. That was accomplished by duplicity. A false ecumenism was the excuse to destroy catholicity. The narrow and firm path of faith was abandoned to join the broad way of the world instead. Our faith –a sacred thing– was diluted with the profane. As a result, Catholic Churches are not filled with former Protestants. It is the Protestant halls that are filled with former Catholics.

The recent Synod in Rome turned out to be a clear sign that is high time to change course and return to “the faith once given to the saints.” Enough of this calling the darkness “light.”

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/5236-2/feed/2Sign the Open Letter to Pope Francis!https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/sign-the-open-letter-to-pope-francis/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/sign-the-open-letter-to-pope-francis/#commentsWed, 27 Feb 2019 16:28:17 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5220NOTE: The Lepanto Institute is asking that faithful Catholics everywhere sign the open letter, promote it on social media, and email it to as many family, friends and colleagues as they believe would also sign the petition. The time for talk is at an end! Dear Pope Francis, If talk is cheap, then this summit […]

NOTE: The Lepanto Institute is asking that faithful Catholics everywhere sign the open letter, promote it on social media, and email it to as many family, friends and colleagues as they believe would also sign the petition. The time for talk is at an end!

Dear Pope Francis,

If talk is cheap, then this summit on sexual abuse is worth even less. After three days of talking, the official spokesmen for the summit went to great lengths to claim that homosexuality was not a concern while they deliberately dodged questions from reporters.

Cardinal Cupich said the day before the summit began that while most of the problem is a result of “male on male” sex abuse, “homosexuality itself is not a cause.” He says it can be explained as a matter of “opportunity and also a matter of poor training on the part of the people.”

Archbishop Scicluna said, “homosexuality and heterosexuality are “human conditions that we recognize, and that exist, but they aren’t something that really predisposes to sin.”

And Cardinal Tagle went on a vapid rant about smelling like the sheep, touching the wounds of the victims and seeking healing.

But all of this talk about the sexual abuse of children is NOT going to do a single thing to resolve the problem, especially as you continue to deny what is at the very heart of it. The problem is rampant sexual immorality … especially homosexuality … in the clergy. Period!

Your Holiness, if you wish to reestablish the faith, trust and love of the laity, you are going to have to take strong actions to root out the problem. We faithful Catholics want a clear and unambiguous decree that enacts strict penalties … including excommunication and laicization … for any cleric, whether deacon, priest, bishop, archbishop or cardinal, who sexually abuses any other person regardless of age, sex or circumstance, or who is found guilty of engaging in any unnatural sexual behavior.

We want all clerics either practicing or promoting homosexuality to be removed from their positions. We want all of the prelates who enable homosexuals, whether lay or clergy, to be removed from their positions. That means removing individuals like Cardinal Cupich, Cardinal Kasper, Cardinal Schönborn, Cardinal Danneels, Cardinal Marx, Cardinal Tagle, Cardinal Tobin, Cardinal Farrell, Cardinal Dolan, Cardinal Wuerl, Archbishop Scicluna , Bishop McElroy, Bishop Gregory, Bishop Wester, Bishop Malone, Father Daniel Horan, Father Thomas Reese, Father Thomas Rosica, and Father James Martin. And that’s just for starters. These men have flouted Church teaching on sexual morality for far too long, and no amount of talking is going to fix the problem of sexual immorality in the church while they remain in their positions. If you truly seek healing for victims and for the Church, you can start there. But if you keep talking this issue to death while sitting on your hands, then rest assured that while we will continue to pray and sacrifice for you, we will not pay you and we will simply wait for you to pass into eternity and judgement so Our Lady and Our Lord can resolve the matter through our patience and our prayers.

Sincerely,

The Faithful

Thank you for subscription with us. We will contact you soon.

Sign the Open Letter to Pope Francis

Your Holiness, if you wish to reestablish the faith, trust and love of the laity, you are going to have to take strong actions to root out the problem. We want a clear and unambiguous decree that enacts strict penalties … including excommunication and laicization … for any cleric, whether deacon, priest, bishop, archbishop or cardinal, who sexually abuses any other person regardless of age, sex or circumstance, or who is found guilty of engaging in any unnatural sexual behavior.

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/sign-the-open-letter-to-pope-francis/feed/73Nothingburgerhttps://www.lepantoinstitute.org/nothingburger/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/nothingburger/#commentsWed, 27 Feb 2019 02:43:22 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5200And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and surrounded the encampment of the saints and the beloved city: and fire came down from heaven and devoured them.” (Revelation 20:9) Catholic authors have been known to be sometimes unwittingly prophetic. In my opinion, that is the case of the Spanish writer Donoso Cortés, […]

And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and surrounded the encampment of the saints and the beloved city: and fire came down from heaven and devoured them.” (Revelation 20:9)

Catholic authors have been known to be sometimes unwittingly prophetic. In my opinion, that is the case of the Spanish writer Donoso Cortés, of Fr. Félix Sardà y Salvany, and the Argentine Fr. Leonardo Castellani. For example, reading Catholicism, Liberalism and Socialism (1851) by Donoso Cortés, one can fully understand what Our Lady of Fatima said about the “error of Russia” that would eventually spread all over the world. Who could deny the predictions of that Spanish author and those of Our Blessed Mother, now that we have members of the United States House of Representatives who are openly Socialists, like Bernie Sanders or Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, among others?

Communism started its ascendance only weeks after the Fatima apparitions in 1917. That ideology has continued its expansion in spite of having been officially abandoned by Russia. Today, a surprisingly sizable number of young Americans look sympathetically to Socialist ideas. The three authors mentioned above sounded the alarm about the dangers of Liberalism. Donoso Cortés, warned us that Liberalism carried in itself the seed of Socialism because that was the only political direction in which it could grow.

The Liberal ideas that developed after the 15th century in Europe and later in the United States necessitate a growth of the role of the State at the expense of Man’s natural liberty and the guidance of the Church. From the beginning, Liberalism wants to “liberate” us from the moral constraints of the Church. That is the reason why all the young branches of that original idea are basically anti-Christian.

One important difference between the early Liberalism and modern Socialism is that Socialism now has the tools to complete the abolition of the Christian order. That mission has been accomplished to a great extent in the Western World. The Church has declined in influence and prestige to a point our Christian forefathers never imagined possible. But prophets do not have to imagine, they are given the grace to see. Father Castellani foresaw the final wave of iniquity and how it would fatally wound the Catholic Church:

the temporal structure of the Church will fall under the sway of the Antichrist. She will fornicate with the kings of the Earth —at least the visible part of it, as it has happened already in history — and the abomination of desolation will enter the holy place.” (quoted in Liberalism: Sin, Iniquity, Abomination, by Horacio Bojorge S. J.)

Our Lord warned us through the prophet Daniel:

Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand.” (Daniel 12:10)

We can thank God for the wisdom of Cortés, Salvany, and Castellani who saw our present situation with clarity and sounded the alarm so that we can understand our times.

As the Church appears to careen into an even bigger crisis now, we can see that serious malicious infiltration has been taking place for the best part of the last century or so. The ultimate origin of the attack is, as usual, the father of lies, the enemy of God. It is a well known fact that the Soviets began to plant agents in the Church in the 1920’s aiming to use ecclesiastical influence for their own political purposes.

A labor union activist who later converted to the Catholic faith, Bella Dodd, revealed that in the early 1950’s the communist had infiltrated a good number of seminaries and even had men placed in the College of Cardinals. Many of those young seminarians got ordained and moved up to influential positions in the hierarchy, gradually creating a network within the Catholic Church.[1]

Ion Mihai Pacepa, a high-ranking officer in the Romanian KGB, revealed that the Soviet conspiracy even involved the creation of a specific theology designed to facilitate the intrusion. According to Pacepa, KGB officers were responsible for the creation of the so-called Theology of Liberation.[2] Other books and authors have added important information about the conspiracy.[3]

February in Rome

A strange coincidence, or perhaps an intentional joke by someone in the Vatican in charge of scheduling important events, made the Synod on Sexual Abuse begin on the day of St. Peter Damian, a Doctor of the Church and the author of the Liber Ghomorrianus, a treatise where our saint thunders against the spread of the vice of homosexuality among the clergy of his time.

The synod was, as many expected, a nothingburger and many called it “a cover up of the cover up” perhaps another page taken from the political manual of Peronism: make a lot of noise about solving a problem, create a committee, and keep the public busy with blah-blah until a new problem takes their attention away. In short, nothing happened but sometimes when nothing happens, everything happens. There was a great hole in the matters up to discussion. A hole named Theodore McCarrick the recently defrocked Cardinal, former Archbishop of Washington, DC, and fundraiser extraordinaire who was a major mover and shaker in the American Catholic Church for decades.

Theodore McCarrick

McCarrick’s treasonous activities should be examined –not only by whoever happens to still be loyal to Christ in the upper hierarchy of the Church– but also by American counterintelligence analysts, because it has become a matter of national security, something that goes well beyond a mere investigation on his many crimes.

McCarrick obviously infiltrated the Church, most likely with the help of Communists. He managed to form a network of men like him, he placed them in strategically important posts where they could wield power and use it to facilitate further infiltration and control. He was a master deceiver, able to manipulate those above and below him to further his aims while living a life of unspeakable vice. This is no mere Benedict Arnold. Rather, imagine had someone like James Monroe been a British agent during the War of Independence. McCarrick the operative likely trained by Soviet agents in Switzerland when he was young, has been within shooting distance of several American Presidents moving freely among the most powerful politicians in the country, sensing their opinions, inclinations, perhaps even hearing highly sensitive information. No one seems to know the full extent of the damage done to the Church and the country by Theodore McCarrick since many of the men he placed in high posts are still there!

How was a poor, young McCarrick able to travel to Switzerland and stay there for months? Why was he expelled from a Catholic High School only to be accepted into a seminary and later ordained as a priest? What was his relation to his ecclesiastical superiors? How was he able to have such a brilliant career while living a double life? Who enabled him? Who looked the other way? How did the network operate and how does it operate now that McCarrick’s cover is blown?

Honest Catholic investigators can do a lot to answer those important questions that the Synod so conspicuously ignored. A Synod that was announced to be the end-all and cure-all of the clerical sexual abuse, ended up being a big “nothingburger” with a side of air but perhaps there is somebody, now lurking in the shadows, who wonders “where’s the beef” and is willing and able to find it. If that is the case, well … “I’m loving it!”

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/nothingburger/feed/18US Catholic Bishops Give $322,000 to Organization Promoting Apostasy, Women’s Ordination and Witchcrafthttps://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-catholic-bishops-give-322000-to-organization-promoting-apostasy-womens-ordination-and-witchcraft/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-catholic-bishops-give-322000-to-organization-promoting-apostasy-womens-ordination-and-witchcraft/#commentsTue, 26 Feb 2019 23:16:41 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5171The Catholic Church exists for a single purpose; the salvation of souls. At the Great Commission, Our Blessed Lord told His disciples to “teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.” […]

The Catholic Church exists for a single purpose; the salvation of souls. At the Great Commission, Our Blessed Lord told His disciples to “teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.” (Matt. 28:19-20).

So, when an institution bearing the name “Catholic” is little more than a perpetual supply chain to organizations who act directly and specifically against what Our Lord commanded His faithful to do, Catholics are left scratching their heads and wondering if there is any faith among the stewards of that money at all.

Since 2006, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), a project of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has funneled $322,000 to just such an organization. That money found its way, through a series of seven grants, into the coffers of the Intercommunity Peace and Justice Center (IPJC), a bastion of heretical and immoral materials.

The Intercommunity Peace and Justice Center (IPJC) received the following grants:

It is important to note that this money was provided by every diocese in the United States that participates in the CCHD collection. Whenever a diocese takes up the CCHD collection (typically the third Sunday of November), 25% of that funding remains with the diocese while the other 75% goes to the National CCHD and is redistributed to groups like this one.

And before we explore the serious issues with this organization, it is also worth noting that in 2012, IPJC received an award from the CCHD, and was featured in the book, Beyond Empowerment: A Pilgrimage with the Catholic Campaign for Human Development by Jeffry Odell Korgen. Clearly, this is not an organization unfamiliar to the CCHD, which, as you will soon see why, calls into serious question the CCHD’s vetting standards.

IPJC and the promotion of women’s ordination and apostasy from the Catholic Church

The summer 2015 issue of IPJC’s quarterly magazine, “A Matter of Spirit,” was based around the theme of women in the church. Several articles in this issue lament the “patriarchy” they see in the Catholic church and — despite definitive Catholic teaching reserving the Sacrament of Holy Orders to men — claim that the Holy Spirit is pushing for the priestly ordination of women. Co-authors Victoria Ries and Fr. James Eblen state:

Given the transformation of the community in the power of the Spirit, both as persons and as a body, and given the mission to transform the world, perhaps now is the time to engage the question of full inclusion of women in the Catholic Church. Pope Francis has said that “the Church has spoken and said no” to the ordination of women, butperhaps the Spirit has something else in mind. In many cultures of the world, women are serving as executive leaders in politics and business. Some ecclesial cultures have embraced the reality of women as bishops and priests. If the “missionary impulse” toward such a world gives the work of evangelization priority over Catholic practices and customs that impede the mission, then perhaps the Spirit is calling for change for the sake of the world. Perhaps the call that some women experience to priesthood is the work of the Spirit—a work of inclusion that will speak of equal dignity for all women and the transformation of all societies in which women are not included or valued as equals. Perhaps the Church is being called to take the lead in this full inclusion of women. If so, this is truly a message that will transform the church and the world. May we have ears to hear and hearts to respond! [emphasis added]

Later, in the same issue, IPJC featured an article by Tara Young-Brown who explains she left the Catholic Church to pursue ordination in the United Church of Christ. She states:

During my years of ministry in the Catholic Church, I experienced the hierarchical structure of the institution and authority of the male priesthood taking precedence over the radical teachings of our faith. I was exhausted of being told that God was calling me to ministry, yet I continued to hit the glass ceiling when it came to leadership. I left the Catholic Church because I kept encountering systems that were more interested in power over people in place of empowering people for the Gospel. After years of grieving, I slowly began to have the courage to be honest with myself. I did not leave the Church because of the suffering I encountered in the institution. I left because Catholicism had taught me to discern and inform my conscience. Today I stand at the threshold of a new season, embarking on an unknown journey. Currently I am a “Member in Discernment” pursuing ordination in the United Church of Christ.

The CCHD should not be granting funds to organizations that take stands directly in opposition to Church teaching or to organizations that give an open platform celebrating an act of apostasy. This in itself is grounds for defunding, however there are further problems with this grantee.

IPJC Leadership publicly endorsed the pro-abortion position of a pro-abortion politician

The Justice for Women Coordinator for IPJC is Giselle Carcamo. Such a position suggests taking positions on public issues regarding women, so it would be imperative for such an individual to be pro-life and pro-family. However, this is not the case.

In 2017, Carcamo signed an endorsement letter of Teresa Mosqueda, a pro abortion politician. The letter specifically spells out that Mosqueda is fighting to guarantee “reproductive justice for all women” which is a euphemism that includes full access to abortion.

This past October, Carcamo promoted transgenderism on social media. On Oct. 28, 2018, she posted the hashtag, “loveWins” and said, “Let’s be rainbows now for the members of the trans community…”

IPJC hosts a library full of books promoting revolution in the Church, witchcraft, radical feminism and liberation theology

Some notable titles in the IPJC library include talks and works by the heretical organization FutureChurch, the Women’s Ordination Conference, Hans Kung and an entire section devoted to Marxist Liberation Theology. Also featured are books such as “Dreaming the Dark: Magic, Sex and Politics” by the notorious witch, Starhawk. Just to illustrate how evil this book is, this is Amazon’s description of it:

“Featuring narrative, chants, songs, and rituals, Dreaming the Dark has helped many thousands of women use magic, spirituality, and community to bring about political and social change. This anniversary edition of the best-selling classic includes a new preface reflecting on the fifteen years since the book’s original publication.”

Below is a short list of some of the other heretical and anti-Catholic literature in the IPJC library:

IPJC Hosts Conferences Led by Heretical Speakers

The issues with IPJC go back a ways, too. In August of 2013, IPJC held a Women’s Convocation which provided speaking platforms to all manner of heretical speakers.

“stubborn resistance to the ordination of women which uses nothing less than Scripture and tradition (misinterpreted though they may be) to justify itself, is probably the clearest example of the repressed feminine turned sour … [w]hen women in our churches will be allowed to do what men have been doing for centuries, justice will have been served without a doubt.”

Another presenter at this convocation was Fr. Michael Crosby, OFM, whose topic was, “Growing into the Cosmic Christ.”

Fr. Crosby is a notorious promoter of homosexuality and women’s ordination. In 2004, Fr. Crosby spoke at a conference decrying the God who would bar priestly ordination from women, saying:

“we still have to worship a God that the Vatican says ‘wills that women not be ordained.’ That god is literally ‘unbelievable.’ It is a false god; it cannot be worshiped. And the prophet must speak truth to that power and be willing to accept the consequence of calling for justice, stopping the violence and bringing about the reign of God.”

In 2006, at the Religious Education Congress in LA, Fr. Crosby denounced what he called, “unequal power between homosexual and heterosexual people.”

In 2010, Estes wrote an article for the National Catholic Reporter titled, “Not a witch hunt — a treasure hunt: GLTB persons.” In the article, Estes states that in her profession as a Jungian psychoanalyst that she, “refused to diagnose any gay person, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered person under the perversion category because of their simple desire to love and be loved in spirit, mind and body by another age-proper and consenting person.”

The majority of the other speakers at this convocation, as well as the others IPJC has hosted, are just as bad.

Clearly this is not an organization worthy of receiving Catholic funds, yet it has fleeced over $300,000 dollars from faithful Catholics in the pews over a period of two decades! No matter how many times the CCHD and its bishop-advocates promise not to fund such organizations, they continue to fund them time and again. No amount of reform is going to change the problem as the CCHD has shown itself to be either completely incapable of properly vetting organizations receiving Catholic funding, or it is itself supportive of groups like this. And if CCHD sees no moral issue with funding an organization such as IPJC, then the fundamental problem with it is plain for all to see.

It is time to END the Catholic Campaign for Human Development.

Please contact the CCHD and demand answers. Ask them how or why an organization like IPJC ever received a grant and if CCHD will demand Catholic money to be returned for violating CCHD guidelines and Catholic moral/social teaching.

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-catholic-bishops-give-322000-to-organization-promoting-apostasy-womens-ordination-and-witchcraft/feed/10Unless there is supernatural help …https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/unless-there-is-supernatural-help/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/unless-there-is-supernatural-help/#commentsThu, 21 Feb 2019 03:24:12 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5136Finally, the Vatican Summit to deal with the problem of clerical sexual abuse began in Rome, preceded by another communication by Archbishop Viganò asking why Pope Francis has named well-known homosexuals to strategic positions of responsibility. A CNN correspondent, Delia Gallagher opened fire by presenting a hypothetical question that most of us have asked ourselves: […]

Finally, the Vatican Summit to deal with the problem of clerical sexual abuse began in Rome, preceded by another communication by Archbishop Viganò asking why Pope Francis has named well-known homosexuals to strategic positions of responsibility. A CNN correspondent, Delia Gallagher opened fire by presenting a hypothetical question that most of us have asked ourselves: Could it be that the problem sexual abuses in the clergy is not being dealt with because homosexuals are now influential enough to control the actions of the curia? Could it be that those who should investigate the matter are up to their Roman collars in it and have no interest in putting an end to the crimes?

Cardinal Cupich was not done yet putting out that fire, when Cardinals Raymond Burke and Walter Brandmüller wrote to the bishops gathered in Rome asking them to deal with the elephant in the bazaar: there is an influential homosexual clique that has a militant homosexual agenda. Burke and Brandmüller asked them to bring that to a swift end. Well, I hope this one works better than those “dubia” presented in the wake of Amoris Laetitia. Those important dubia received the treatment that many Argentine bureaucrats know how to dispense: “Please leave it on my desk, I will ignore it at once!”

Additionally, a gay journalist with a keen sense of timing, Frederic Martel, put the hammer down (pun intended) by presenting a book filled with interviews that seem to confirm what we have known for years: the epidemic of clerical abuse is a consequence of ordaining thousands of homosexuals to the priesthood. The problem is not the celibacy rule, pedophilia, or clericalism: the problem are homosexual priests. Most of us have concluded that much months if not years ago.

The Church is important

“The world was made for the sake of the Church,” (The Shepherd of Hermas) and that has some important consequences. Compared to the Church, that thing “the martyrs call ‘the world’” —to use Yeats’ words— is but a passing shadow: “the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded [by God] as dust on the scales.” (Isaiah 40:15) We understand the Church has a divine purpose, a hard reality that will not pass away no matter how many blows the world may direct at her. If the Church is in good shape, the world will be in good shape. If the Church is weak and troubled, the world will be weak and troubled.

Holy priests are important also

The Encyclical Sacerdotails Caelibatus of Pope Paul VI, is a very thorough document that basically examines all the ramifications of what St. Paul taught in his Letter to the Galatians: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” (Galatians 5:22-26 NIV) In this time of crisis, when we desperately need to find the right direction, knowing the value and fruitfulness of a priest’s purity is a good place to start.

Priests offer their vows of chastity, purity, and poverty as a sacrifice to God. God will not be outdone in generosity because He is primarily a benefactor, the maker and dispenser of all that is good and holy. By accepting the unpolluted sacrifice of a holy priest, God gives back to that priest a much bigger grace: the power to inseminate the Church spiritually. The priest becomes, through the Sacraments, a conduit for the Church to receive God’s goodness. Think of the example of St. Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney and what he was able to do in France after the French Revolution had devastated the country. In him you will see the power of a holy priesthood.

But this wonderful gift turns into a devastating weapon when a priest is unfaithful. In Judas Iscariot we see the prime example of what a bad bishop or priest can bring about. Not only was Judas instrumental in causing Jesus’ death; Judas was used by the devil to send the entire nation into a collision course with God’s purpose, unleashing centuries of suffering on his own people.

In our days, the likes of Maciel, McCarrick, Geoghan, and others are going to experience the wrath of God if they do not repent. Those have abused the trust placed in them to satisfy their basest passions. Now they must do penance commensurate with the awful sins they have committed. But neither them nor the Church can escape the consequences of their heinous crimes.

That is why it is imperative for all of us to offer reparation for their sexual abuse and all offenses against God’s Holy Name. I do not have any hope that this summit can solve the problems at hand. In fact, I know only God in his infinite wisdom and power can undo the damage done and stop the disaster that is unfolding all around us.

Five hundred years ago, a saintly Bishop, Juan de Zumarraga was faced with an unsolvable problem. He wrote a letter to King Charles V stating: “unless there is supernatural help, the land is lost.” He did receive that supernatural help. After Zumarraga prayed his heart out, Our Lady of Guadalupe came from Heaven to save Mexico.

We should all follow Zumarraga’s example, begging God to have mercy on us and on the whole world: “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

St. Peter Damian (1007-1072 A.D.) was born in Ravenna, Italy, the youngest of a large and noble yet poor family. After his birth his mother initially refused to nurse him due to the strain he would put on the family, and he nearly died. He was later orphaned and suffered from extreme poverty. One brother adopted him, but neglected him and treated him like a slave. Another brother, a priest, recognizing that Peter had great intelligence, took him in and provided for his education. Peter excelled in his studies and in religious piety. By the time he was twenty-five he became a professor famous for his work in theology and canon law. Bothered by the distractions of university life, at twenty-eight he left his position to become a Benedictine monk and to lead a quiet life of fervent prayer and self-mortification. He lived during a time of great corruption in the Church, and became heavily involved in the controversies and crises of the day, advocating for reform and greater discipline in religious life. He was an influential figure, a friend and adviser to both popes and emperors, and was made a bishop and cardinal. Due to his academic prowess and prolific theological writings, St. Peter Damian was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1823. His feast day is February 21. (Your Morning Offering for February 21, 2019)

Most relevant to our own age is Damian’s famous Liber Gomorrhianus, or “Book of Gomorrah,” a long letter in the form of a libellus addressed to Pope St. Leo IX sometime between 1049 and 1054. The book, which is written against an epidemic of sodomy “raging like a cruel beast within the sheepfold of Christ” has deep resonance with us today, and offers many insights into the contemporary crisis in the priesthood. Damian’s opening words almost seem addressed to the contemporary Church, as he warns the pope that the “cancer of sodomitic impurity” is threatening the integrity of the clergy itself, and urges him to act with all speed, adding that “unless the force of the Apostolic See opposes it as quickly as possible, there is no doubt that when it finally wishes for the unbridled evil to be restrained, it may not be able to halt the fury of its advance.” (Quote from the article in Catholic World Report, St. Peter Damian’s battle against clerical homosexuality offers useful lessons for today)

]]>https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/unless-there-is-supernatural-help/feed/2US Bishops Give $305K to Organization Headed by Planned Parenthood Championhttps://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-bishops-give-305k-to-organization-headed-by-planned-parenthood-champion/
https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/us-bishops-give-305k-to-organization-headed-by-planned-parenthood-champion/#commentsTue, 19 Feb 2019 02:11:13 +0000https://www.lepantoinstitute.org/?p=5117The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) just released the 2017-2018 list of Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) grants and the Lepanto Institute has already started its investigation of grantees. The last disbursement of grant payments for this particular grants cycle was in February of 2018, so the publication of this list comes […]

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The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) just released the 2017-2018 list of Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) grants and the Lepanto Institute has already started its investigation of grantees. The last disbursement of grant payments for this particular grants cycle was in February of 2018, so the publication of this list comes a full year after the CCHD had already fully-funded every organization on this list. The big question is, “What took so long?” After a cursory glance through the list, it seems pretty clear that the reason has to do with a deliberate lack of transparency. If there are issues found with this list of grantees, then it can be shrugged off as “last year’s list.” In fact, if the organization is receiving another grant this year, the CCHD can then remove the organization’s name from this year’s list (before it is published) and we will never know if it had been re-approved for another grant before the next round of disbursements.

As we read through the list of grants, it wasn’t long before we found problematic organizations receiving funding. The first organization that stood out was one that was identified by the Reform CCHD Now Coalition in 2011.

Since 2007, the New Mexico Acequia Association (NMAA) has received seven grants from the USCCB’s Catholic Campaign for Human Development, totaling $305,000 (here are links for CCHD grants lists for 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2017).

Just three months later, she obtained the full endorsement of the nation’s largest abortion chain, which called her a “Champion for Planned Parenthood.” According to the article announcing the endorsement, Planned Parenthood stated that those whom it endorsed pledged to support “access to reproductive health care, including abortion.” It then said that they “only endorse candidates who we know will be champions for Planned Parenthood.” In other words, there is no way Garcia received the endorsement of Planned Parenthood without specifically and personally stating her support for abortion and Planned Parenthood.

What is sadly obvious about this endorsement is that it is absolutely clear that while Planned Parenthood did its due diligence in vetting people, the CCHD either did not, or it simply turned a blind eye. Either way, Garcia’s endorsement from Planned Parenthood should come as no surprise to anyone, let alone the CCHD, considering the fact that in 2011, the Reform CCHD Now Coalition reported that Garcia had served two terms as the chair of the Mora County Democratic Party.
As Chair for the Democratic Party of Mora County, Garcia would have been bound to supporting the Democratic Party platform of New Mexico, which included support for homosexuality, same-sex “marriage,” “reproductive rights” and even a “right to die.”
According to Guidestar, Garcia’s income as the Executive Director of the New Mexico Acequia Association was $65,129 in 2014, $63,663 in 2015, and $68,694 in 2016. Considering the fact that the Catholic Campaign for Human Development has supplied $305,000 to this organization over the last 12 years, it is abundantly clear that the CCHD has been supplying Catholic funds to a known and active agent of the Democratic Party and a “Champion of Planned Parenthood.” With this kind of funding continuing to come from CCHD, can there be any wonder that it delays as long as it can before publishing its list of awarded grants?

Contact the CCHD and demand to know why an organization headed by a Champion for Planned Parenthood is continuing to receive Catholic money: